ROB Dillingham is poised to reach the highest grades in the NBA Draft after overcoming a disaster at Kanye West’s Donda Academy.
The Kentucky point guard will be a lottery pick in next week’s NBA Draft at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn on June 26-27.
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The 6-foot-2 star overcame questions about his small stature by scoring 15.2 points off the bench this season.
But it was a tumultuous journey for Dillingham, who hurriedly left his family home in North Carolina for the contaminated Donda Academy in California in 2021 — and was ostracized by his family in the process.
According to Dillingham’s father, Donald, the high school prodigy went to Donda Academy at age 16 without his family’s knowledge or consent after its founder, West, called the young man on FaceTime.
“[West] said: ”what are you going to do?”’ Donald told the Daily Mail.
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“If you’re 16 and someone like Kanye West asks you that…”
Donald then released a series of Facebook posts, attacking the rapper and the gym start-up while expressing concern for his son.
“This is the fifth week since my son, Robert Dillingham, left North Carolina without my knowledge or consent,” he wrote.
“I can’t talk to my son, my family, and Donda Academy refuses to talk to me about my son’s enrollment.
“There was so much deception that everything got out of control. My feeling is that Robert wants to contact me, but he can’t.
“I just want to talk to my son and know that he is okay and is not being exploited. I was informed that Robert was instructed not to speak to me.
“Robert is acting out of character.”
He added in another post: “I’m desperate to speak to my son. I admit that I have not been the perfect father, but my love and concern for my son is genuine.
“The stress of it all is taking a toll on my health. I won’t relax until I’m sure my son is safe.”
Dillingham’s time at Donda Academy collapsed a year after he joined, following a series of anti-Semitic statements by West.
The Donda basketball team was withdrawn from several tournaments and the school closed soon after.
Dillingham, 19, moved to Atlanta-based Overtime Elite for one season before moving to Kentucky for the 2023-24 season.
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Before the NBA Draft, he worked with the San Antonio Spurs, among other teams.
Dillingham is excited about the prospect of playing with Spurs center Victor Wembanyama.
“He could be one of the best players of all time,” Dillingham said at the NBA Combine.
“If I’m playing Wemby, it’s obvious – I’m coming in to give Wemby the ball.”
2024 NBA Draft Request – Lottery Picks
- Atlanta Falcons
- Wizards of Washington
- Houston Rockets (via Brooklyn)
- Saint Anthony’s incentive
- Detroit pistons
- Charlotte Hornets
- Portland Trail Blazers
- San Antonio Spurs (via Toronto)
- Memphis Grizzlies
- Utah Jazz
- Chicago buffaloes
- Oklahoma City Thunder (via Houston)
- Kings of Sacramento
- Portland Trail Blazers (via Golden State)
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
